Yoki Shinai
by Cyanide Wednesday
Summary: Because some things never change, and some change too much. (Spoilers Manga 649). FemNaru. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Naruto has been forced, due to political reasons, to live in Suna as a Sunagakure kunoichi. Just how will it turn out?
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

_"And I'd give up forever to touch you, because I know that you feel me somehow. You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be and I don't want to go home right now"_  
_-Iris (Goo goo Dolls)._

Uzumaki Naruto could see Sunagakure in the distance. While she walked through the desert sand, she could feel her feet burning and blistering, and her clothes wet with her sweat. The heat of Suna was mercyless... but she would have to get used to it. Wether she was willing to or not.

For the first time since she'd left Konoha, she gave mind to her predicament.

Even though she had taken part in the winning battle against Madara, even though Sasuke was back in the village, even though now she was no longer a menace because of Kurama, the new council of Konoha had decided that, for political reasons, she had to leave the village. That didn't stung, now did it?

However, taking her dream and burning it down to ashes did. It stung a lot.

It had been decided that she could not be allowed to become Hokage. It wasn't because she wasn't strong enough, or experienced enough. It wasn't even because they though she didn't deserve it, because they completely thought she did. It was because they had now the chance to redeem past mistakes, and in order to do so, her dreams, her life, had to be taken apart.

The reason the Council had given her was both completely impulsive and painfully rational.

Since Uchiha Sasuke had come back (by choice, and not because of her insistance) it now existed the posibility expanding the Uchiha Clan, which would be great to Konoha, if Uchiha stayed there and produced Sharingan Babies. And so, they had to make sure that Sasuke didn't leave, and as he had made clear his will of becoming Hokage (as idiotic as it sounded) they had made that decision that he would be the next Hokage in line, after Tsunade retired. However, they knew the Uchiha held an unclear bond with Naruto. They couldn't let him know that they had taken her dream away, only to ensure his happyness and his staying in the village (which most certainly would not make him happy) and they had asked her to please, leave the village and make it seem like she was leaving willingly.

It was, after all, for the better. Wasn't it?

Her feelings had been mixed up, troubled. Why was it always her? Why was it that even though she worked her ass off she couldn't seem to get a hold of her dreams?

Oh, right. Because her dreams weren't for the village's sake... Were they?

She had felt like her whole life was crumbling. But, as expected, she had just plastered a smile onn her face and agreed, saying that in a month, she would be leaving to Suna.

And so, here she was.

* * *

Sabaku no Gaara was standing in front of the gates of Sunagakure, his gaze lingering in the dunes before scanning in search for his friend.

"You seem upset, Gaara"

Gaara looked at his brother briefly before responding.

"I just wish I knew what was going on" he said.

Kakurou sighed. It was five days ago when a letter from Konoha had arrived. It had been brief, and stated that the kunoichi Uzumaki Naruto would be arriving to Suna to stay there for an indefinite amount of time, working under the command of the Kazekage.

No more, no less.

"Yeah. Me too" he said lazily.

"She's almost here" said Gaara.

"How do you know?"

Gaara pointed his finger to a blond spot in the desert. Undoubtedly, Uzumaki Naruto was nearing the gates of Suna.

"Well. Might as well go and receive her. We sure have been impatient for her to arrive and explain" said Kankurou, walking outside the gates.

Gaara said nothing, but followed.

She was finally here.

* * *

She couldn't help but smile at the sight of her best friend and his brother. It was always comforting to see Gaara.

"Welcome to Suna" said the Kazekage with a small smile "We've been expecting you".

"Yeah, Naruto. Long time no see" added Kankurou with a smirk.

"Hi, Gaara, Kankurou. Yeah, it's been a bit" she said laughing "Guess we won't have to worry about not seeing each other often enough now".

"It seems like it. Let's go to my office and discuss the details, shall we?" offered Gaara.

"Sure" she said "Let's go, 'ttebayo"

* * *

It had been two hours since Naruto and Gaara had been locked up in his office, with Naruto explaining the whole situation, and Gaara's gaze darkening with each word.

"And that's about it" she said, scratching the back of her head.

"I see" he said calmly "Naruto. I know this is a difficult time for you, but I want to to always remember that Suna will be there for you as long as I am Kazekage. You can rely on me."

She smiled "Thank you Gaara. I know I can."

They stared into each other's eyes until Gaara cleared his throat.

"You'll be staying at my house, for now. You can stay there as long as you like, even permanently" he said "Of course, if you wish to live on your own we can work something out."

"I think I'll stay with you. It definetely will be an exiting experience" she said smiling. Truthfully, she didn't feel strong enough to live on her own right now.

Gaara smiled his tiny smile and nodded.

"I'm sure it will be."


	2. First Day Away

**Chapter One: First Day Away  
**

_"And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming, or the moment of truth in your lies. When everything feels like the movies, yeah you bleed just to know you're alive" -Iris (Goo goo Dolls)._

The room that was given to her was the one across from Gaara's. The Kazekage had excused himself and said that he would be back for dinner, leaving her alone to organize her stuff.

She sat on the bed and felt the urge to break something.

It did not bother her at all that she had to live in Suna, she loved Suna, and living there would give her the chance to spend more time with the Sand Siblings.

But she was furious.

How _dare _the Council kick her out of her own home? How _**dare **_they say she couldn't be Hokage, and that they would be giving the title to a guy that had wanted to destroy them and everything they'd ever known? Were they fucking _idiots_? _This wasn't right._

As much as she liked Suna, it wasn't her home.

As much as she liked the Sand Siblings, they weren't her friends in Konoha.

And she was angry at _him_.

How couldn't he have a clue?

Had Sasuke grown fucking stupid?

The last month she had been in Konoha, she had been different. It was harder to smile, to eat, to sleep, to breathe... it was harder to live. She had spent a lot of time wth him, talking, taking long walks, just sitting by each other. She had decided to give the last bit of her time in Konoha to the man that had unknowingly (or knowingly, you never know, with that Uchiha bastard) taken everything from her.

Because that way, by letting herself feel everything she felt for him, all the love, all the hate, all the everything, by spending that time with him, she was a step closer to forgetting him.

Because it was already time for her to forget about Uchiha Sasuke.

* * *

That night, Naruto had trouble falling asleep. She couldn't quite get used to the cool desert night, and no matter how many blankets she threw over herself, she just couldn't seem to get any warmer.

_'In Konoha, nights are not freezing cold' _she thought bitterly.

"Damn desert, and it's crazy weather" she mumbled as she got up (still covered with the four blankets she had thrown over herself) and headed towards her closet, looking for more blankets.

She searched everywhere, and even checked her storage scrolls, but she couldn't find any.

She checked her clock:

_21:45 p.m._

Maybe she could ask Gaara if he had any? It wasn't that late, and she knew Gaara almost never slept (even after having the Ichibi extracted).

Walking the short distance between Gaara's room and her own, she knocked on his door and waited for an answer.

She heard movement inside and shortly after, the door was opened by the Kazekage

"Naruto" he greeted as he eyed her (and her blankets) with amusement "Is there anything you need?"

Naruto noticed that he was wearing only a black shirt and a pair of loose black pants, and didn't seem to be bothered by the cruel cold.

"I was wondering if you had any blankets, it's freezing cold 'ttebayo" she said as she hugged the blankets closer to her body.

"Cold?" asked the Kazekage arching a non-existent eyebrow. He didn't think the night was cold, just the perfect temperature.

Of course, this came from someone who has been living in the desert his whole life.

"Yeah. Aren't you gonna catch a cold if you stay like that?" she asked and he could see that she was shivering.

"I highly doubt it. We are used to this kind of weather, here" he said "But you can have my blanket, I barely use it anyway." He said as he opened the door and went to look for the item "Come in." he added.

Naruto walked into the room and could see that he was still doing paperwork, even if it was almost ten in the evening.

"Here" said Gaara as he handed her an orange blanket. Naruto took it gratefully and offered him a smile.

"Thank you, Gaara" she said as she walked towards the door "Goodnight."

"Goodnight" he replied in a soft tone.

She didn't know why (maybe it was because the blanket was extremely thick) but she was fast asleep with Gaara's blanket covering her.

Also, it smelled like him.

* * *

Breakfast at the Sabaku no's consisted in a bowl of cereal and a fruit, since Temari was always saying that she didn't have time to cook, Kankurou couldn't cook to save his life and Gaara simply didn't know where he fitted in the kitchen aside from the table.

Everyone left very soon after that and Naruto accompanied Gaara to the Kazekage's office.

Gaara read her file quickly and started signing some papers and taking notes, before adding those to her file and putting it away neatly on the pile on his left.

"Naruto, I know you were still ranked at genin back at Konoha, but I think you've proven yourself to be strong enough to rival the five kages put together. This is why I'm giving you the Suna headband along with your Jounin rank. You will work as a Jounin instructor, and will be assigned a genin team a week from now. In the meantime, you shall come up with your lessons and hand me your reports. Then you will give me reports on your student's progress, until the Suna's Chunnin exams take place." Gaara said whilst looking at her straight in the eye "You will be held responsible for these kids, shall any damage occur to them under your watch it will be charged against you, unless the circumstances were out of your reach to manage."

"Understood, Kazekage-sama" Naruto said, taking her Suna headband and tying it securely in her forehead.

"Good. I expect your first report by six in the evening. You are dismissed." He said.

"Hai, Gaara-sama" she said. Gaara smiled.

"There's no need for you to call me that. You can call me by my name, like my siblings do. I consider you, after all, my best friend" he said.

Narruto grinned.

"Yeah. Sure, Gaara. See you later, then" she said before leaving his office.

* * *

"You are thinking about her" Karin's voice broke him away from his thoughts.

"About who?" he asked, though it was obvious he knew who she was referring to. He just wanted to know if he was that easy to read.

"Naruto" she said "And no, you are not easy to read. But your chakra is uneasy."

"Hn" he grunted. He hated the way Karin could read him like an open book at the times she shouldn't and _needn't_.

"You were wondering why she left?" she asked.

"Karin" he said with a sigh "I will not talk of this with you" he stated as he started to walk away.

She didn't insist as she stared at his retreating back.

_'Oh,' _she though _'but you should, Sasuke.'_

_'Because I know the truth'_

* * *

_Thank you all for your reviews, I appreciate them very much. _

Author's note: Naruto is not forgiving. Not at all. She's mad as hell. I don't think you can really notice in the first few chapters, but then it'll become clear enough. The chapters will be as long as I see fit, and I will work on my writing quality in the english language, since I am not a native speaker. I will not look for a Beta reader, since I don't think I need one, but I will do my best to improve. I really love your reviews and constructive criticism, I hope you find this chapter enjoyable :)

Greetings,

Cyanide Wednesday.


	3. Explanations

**Chapter Two: Explanations**

_"And I don't want the world to see me, ´cuz I don't think that they'd understand" -Iris (Goo goo Dolls)._

Tsunade Senju finished her second bottle of sake of the day. And it was only eleven in the morning.

Although she did like to drink quite a lot, it wasn't normally like this. This much drinking was unusual even for someone like her, who drank aproximately two bottles of sake almost everyday. Today, at 11:00 a.m., she found herself starting on her third sake bottle and, surprinsingly, doing paperwork as she did so.

There was a knock on the door.

Tsunade hid her bottle in case it was Shizune and sighed.

"Come in" she said tiredly. The door opened revealing a silver haired jounin, who closed the door behind him.

"Tsunade -sama" he said "I would like to discuss a matter with you."

She felt annoyingly nervous at the tone of his voice, but motioned for him to continue.

"I usually don't involve myself in these kind of matters" he started "or anything involving the Council, really, but I fear I find myself with the need of asking; Do you know the real reason behind my student's actions, Hokage-sama?"

Tsunade stared at the man before her blankly before taking a deep breath and letting out a heavy sigh.

"I do know. But you have to understand, Kakashi, this matter must never go public, or hell would break loose."

Kakashi arched and eyebrow.

"So you agree with them?" he asked. It sounded more like a statement, and from the angry trembling of his voice, not one that he was pleased to know.

It was Tsunade's turn to arch an eyebrow.

"What do you know of this, and how did you find out?" she asked.

"I was informed by Naruto's cousin of the changes. I did the math"

"The sensor type" Tsunade went pale as she remembered the girl was loyal to Sasuke "Kakashi...!"

"She isn't stupid, Hokage-sama. Plus, I was kind enough to let her know what would happen if she were to tell him anything" he answered.

Tsunade seemed a bit relieved after hearing this, but remained uncalm.

"So..." she took out her bottle and took a sip "Allow me to explain."

"Even with my position as the current Hokage, my opinion held no importance regarding this matter, believe me, I tried to convince them that this was not a smart choice, but they didn't listen to me. Thing is, they_ know_ Naruto deserves the position, but they are desperate, obsessed, with solving matters with the Uchiha. Even in his current state of probation they have decided to clear him of all charges due to his contribution in war. They think that by doing what they are going to do they will avoid yet another war that could be possibly be thrown by Uchiha himself if he... Anyway, Sasuke is to be named Hokage the day I quit (or rather, they day they see fit for me to quit). Obviously, the kid doesn't know any of this. If he were to find out the real reason Naruto left or the Council's plans for him, who knows what he'd be capable of. He surely has shown a weak physique, not that I blame Sasuke, but still." she said.

"I see" Kakashi murmured "You know, everyone always put everything else above Naruto on a level of importance. Before it was because she was the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi and couldn't control him, and now, well, now they are just being assholes."

He sighed.

"Minato-sensei... No, every past Hokage would be disappointed to see what Konoha has become. _Specially_ Hashirama-sama" he added.

Tsunade's eyes lightened up with fury.

"Are you suggesting I don't know how to do my job, jounin?" she hissed.

Kakashi stared at her, not a bit intimidated.

"Not at all, Hokage-sama. I believe you do your job flawlessly, like a machine, almost. What I think you are... lacking, is a bit knowing what's worth fighting for. You are letting these people destroy your ideals. You have forgotten the girl that risked her life to save you, to save us all, because she wanted to, because she loves us, because that is her ninja way." Kakashi said, his voice holding too many emotions to analyze.

"Kakashi" said Tsunade while looking at him straight in the eye.

"Yes, Hokage-sama?"

"You are dismissed"

"Yes, Hokage-sama"

As soon as Kakashi left, Tsunade gulped down her third bottle and started on her fourth.

* * *

Naruto caught her kunai just to flick it again. Glad she had something to think of that wasn't her current situation (or her feelings regarding it) she thought of what her first class could be about.

She wondered if Suna's training style was nay different from Konoha's, due that living in the desert certainly had its complications. She thought she could always base her teaching style on Kakashi's or maybe Jiraiya's (definetely not Maito Gai's). She could start with an introduction and test each kid to check out and measure their skills. She didn't want to make the bell test or anything similar because she wasn't sure they would grasp the concept (as like her team had completely failed it), she was more interested in seeing what kind of kids they were first and then they could start the lessons on teamwork.

She stood from the bench she had been sitting at and dusted off her clothes as she started to walk towards the Kazekage's office. She would ask Gaara if he was free for lunch and clear some of her doubts regarding training in Suna.

While walking, she took off her jacket and tied it around her hips. Suna's cruel heat was even more so at mid-day and she felt as if she were going to melt. Glancing around, she noticed people were staring at her.

It was normal, she though, as she was a foreigner and had yet to be presented officially as a kunoichi from Suna.

Once in Gaara's office, she knocked the closed door (usually open) and waited for an answer.

"Wait a minute" came Gaara's voice.

Naruto leaned against the wall and stared at her feet. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea...?

Sure, it was lunchtime, but surely Gaara was busy, he was, after all, the Kazekage. After many long minutes debating with herself she decided it was better if she just left, but just as she had taken her first step, the door opened and a shinobi team walked out.

"You may come in now" came Gaara's smooth voice.

Naruto battled between fleeing the scene and staying, and decided on the latter as she entered Gaara's office and closed the door behind her.

"Hey" she said with a grin "I was wondering if you wanted to grab lunch with me, 'ttebane."

Gaara checked the clock on his desk and seemed surprised to find out that six hours had already passed since they had last seen each other. Then he smiled.

"Sure. Let me just finish this and we'll go" he said pointing to a medium sized stack of paperwork.

"Do you want help?" she offered.

Gaara seemed surprised at the suggestion, but nodded his head.

"Yes. You can pull that chair closer if you want" he said, signaling to the chair in front of his desk "These are requests. The D ranked will go on the brown folder, the C ranked on the yellow one, B and A ranked o the blue ones and the S ranked ones you will hand to me" he said as Naruto sat near him.

They were done in less than fifteen minutes.

When they were leaving, Gaara told her he knew a place, and since she didn't knew any restaurants in Suna she accepted to go there.

The place Gaara took her to was a japanese restaurant. They were given a table by a waitress (who eyed them curiously) and were handed the menus. After ordering their drinks, Gaara spoke to her.

"I brought you here because this is the only restaurant in Suna that serves ramen. I'm afraid it is not a popular food here. I thought you'd enjoy eating your favorite meal and knowing which restaurant has it. I was hoping it would cheer you up a bit, as I know how fond you are of food" he said softly.

Naruto felt something warm up in her chest-intense gratitude and happiness- and smiled widely at him.

"Thank you so much, Gaara" she said, grateful she had a friend like him.

He nodded.

"I just want you to be ok" he said.

The waitress came back with their drinks and asked if they were ready to order. The both ordered miso ramen (Naruto's favorite) and took a few sips of their drinks (Gaara did, she gulped half the thing down).

"Hey, Gaara, I have a few questions regarding ninja training here in Suna" she said.

"Go ahead" he said.

"Well, I was wondering if there is any specific training genins follow?"

"It it usually up to their jounin sensei. All basics, including standard desert storm and standard desert survival are taught in the Academy" he said "I don't think our system is that much different from Konoha's, so I think you're good."

"Great, 'ttebane! I was planning on maybe basing my teaching method on Kakashi's or maybe Ero-Sennin's.

"Both were good teachers. I can tell from their student" he said.

"Yeah, Ero-Sennin was great... except when he was doing research" she said.

"Research on what?" he asked (and he looked rather curious).

"Oh, you know. It usually implied spying on naked women or making me use my Oiroke no jutsu. That old perv, I swear 'ttebane..." she said just as her noodles arrived and she said a hurried 'Itadakimasu!' as she began to eat.

Gaara stared at her, a twitch in his non-existent eyebrows.

"_...Oiroke no jutsu?_"

* * *

Hey guys, thank you so much for all the reviews, follows and favorites, I hope you are liking the story so far.

Just a quick note; I found out that dattebane is the feminine form of dattebayo, so that's what Naruto will be using from now on.

If you have any suggestions or comments, please feel free to leave a review.

Laters,

Cyanide.

-Also, I'll try to update each week, so stay tuned.


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